1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an improvement of a toner container, and in particular, to a toner container that is used for an image forming apparatus of an electrophotographic system and is installed in the image forming apparatus.
2. Description of Prior Art
In the image forming apparatus of an electrophotographic system, there is widely employed a toner replenishing method wherein a toner container storing toner is installed in the image forming apparatus, and toner is supplied bit by bit to the image forming apparatus from the toner container in the course of operations of the image forming apparatus.
A toner container used in the toner replenishing method of this kind is figured out so that a toner outlet of the toner container may be opened when the toner container is in an image forming apparatus, and the toner outlet may be closed when the toner container is taken out of the image forming apparatus.
The toner container is required not to leak toner when the toner container is conveyed with toner stored in the toner container and when, the toner replenishment is in execution under the condition that the toner container is installed in the image forming apparatus.
To satisfy the required function of this kind, a space between a main body of the toner container and a cap that closes a toner outlet on the toner container main body is sealed with a sealing member, in Japanese Registration Patent No. 3628539 (Patent Document 1).
FIG. 1 shows a schematic structure of a toner container disclosed in Patent Document 1.
Cap 20 is connected to a toner outlet of a cylindrical toner container main body 10, and seal member 60 is interposed between an end portion that forms an outlet of the toner container main body 10 and an end portion of the cap 20, to prevent toner leakage.
In the case of a toner container in Patent Document 1, seal member 60 is interposed between an end portion of toner container main body 10 and an end portion of a cap.
For preventing toner leakage, it is necessary to ensure that toner is not accumulated on a part of seal member 60.
For this purpose, an internal circumferential surface of the seal member 60 needs to be aligned with, or to be protruded from an internal circumferential surface of an end portion of the container main body, as illustrated.
In the case of this structure, toner is stemmed by the seal member, to be accumulated in the vicinity of the seal member, and toner ejection from the toner container main body 10 is disturbed.
Accurate toner replenishment is sometimes disturbed by this toner accumulation phenomenon.